Beer: Reviews & Ratings

enjoyed on-tap at the brewpub. One of their beter ones, with Northern Brewer, Centennial and Cascade. The odour is c-hop but also odd. Cloudy yellow and lacey. Smooth and good bitterness, nicely malted. Orangey taste, hop resin, fairly decent drinkability. (256 characters)

Well you've got to at least love the name! Old Elephant Foot just sounds so English, doesn't it? And yet there are some American hops to it as well. I found it spicy and leafy (and a touch floral), but there's a good bit of pine and citrus to it as well. Beyond that, the malt also remains very English in nature. It's got a clear caramel edge to it that offers both golden and dark caramels, and it's a bit bready and toasty. Where it's American for sure is in it's girth, and in it's bitterness level; in that sense this is kind of an amped up English IPA (which normally tend to be lighter than Americans) - or am I totally backwards on this and it's an American IPA with an English bent? Regardless, it serves the purpose... it's a full-flavored, medium-bodied ale with more strength (7.0%) and a dry and hoppy character - it satiates! Nicely done! (938 characters)

First had: on tap at...er, I forget, but I sampled it again at the brewpub in Tampa.

This was probably the best beer I had from TBBC, and that isn't saying much. Orange-amber pour, clearish, with a moderate white head that displayed average retention and lacing. Nose was generally hop-forward, citrusy, floral, distant pale malts. Taste was similar, crisp C-hops, balanced out with pale male sweetness, perhaps more resembling an APA than an authentic IPA. Light-medium body, and decently drinkable, but nothing tremendous. (525 characters)

Poured on-tap at the Tampa Bay Brewing Co brewery in Ybor City. The beer was served in a pint glass, and it is a very slightly hazed copper coloring with a thin film of head. Wet, resinous hops aroma that is slightly sweet. Effervescent citrus notes on the nose, also. Flavors are dark roasted sweet malt with a dry, peppery hopping on the undercurrent. Reminiscent of English IPAs. Darkly sweet malty aftertaste, with peppery spice and slight cedar characteristics. Slightly dry, slightly slick finish. Good flavor that stays consistent and doesn't overpower. Good drinker. (574 characters)

A: Straight up orange in color. A good pour yields a 2.5 white head. Speaking of white, it looks like a snow globe, as I'm getting lots of tiny white floaties that fall from the head to the bottom of the beer. Decent lacing rims the glass as I drink.

S: Mostly pine-like hops. There's a touch of bitter grapefruit in there too. Not as floral or explosive as I would have liked.

T: East Coast bittering hops all the way. I'm not sure what it is about FL IPA's, but I'd think that due to the sweltering heat, you'd want to brew a tropical, fruit forward IPA. But this, like so many others, is very malt forward. As it wraps up, it dries out the palate a good bit.

M: Velvety and soft. The feel here really jumps in and helps to save this one, as it's creamy, dense and really easy to put back.

O: Certainly not a bad beer, it's rather just...I don't know...a beer? If you're in need of hops, this will suffice I guess. But it's not one I'd reach for over other (and better) hop offerings that await me on the shelf. A solid tick, but not much more. (1,171 characters)

T - Taste is a bit too malty/sweet, but that seems to taste like age than simply a sweeter IPA. Bitter hops is still on the finish, solid grapefruit rind finish and light citrus throughout with nice orange notes. Finish is nice, but not quite as hoppy as I prefer.

M - Mouthfeel is solid, alcohol hidden nicely. Crisp and clean.

O - Overall, tastes like it was a damn fine IPA, just perhaps a bit on the older side? The bitterness is well done, just too much malt for my liking. (824 characters)

This beer is supposed to be retired, but it's alive and well at the brewpub, regular draft and cask conditioned. It poured an amber color with a thick white head and quite impressive lacing. It had a sweet, outdoorsy scent, and a nice hoppy taste. I probably should drink more cask-conditioned beers, because they all taste too flat to me, and this was no exception. Still, it was a pretty good beer. (400 characters)

Completely random grab at Total Wine in Tampa, FL. Didn't know how long this brew has been around. Nice description on the can about it being referred to as over-hopped back in the 90s. Cool.

A- Pours from the tallboy can to a goblet and teku with a fair amount of haze in the golden-orange body. The white head ends up at one finger high with a frothy texture. Large band sits around the glass dropping only a few small sheets of lacing.

S- Intense citrus hops off the top and not in the nectar or juicy sort of way; edgy orange zest and pine prominent. Floral, bready and caramel candy notes as well.

T- Again, orange peel hops ala Cascade are the centerpiece as in the aroma. Floral, herbal and pine notes lead to a finish with a decent bit of crystal grains and caramelized sugar hints. A bit of alcohol amps harsh bitter citrus peel.

MF- Medium bodied with a certain slickness I am only used to in other styles like Barleywines for example. Texture is mostly foamy with high carbonation. Finishes bitter and somewhat warm.

Brewed since 1993 and it sort of reminds me of some of the earlier IPAs I reviewed in my early days of craft brews. Big Cascade hops lead to a cushion of medium caramel malts. Not exactly the cleanest brew overall as some alcohol comes out in the flavor and feel. (1,296 characters)

Pours a mostly clear orange-ish color with white head. Some floral notes, with a bit of pine and grass, and just a hint of citrus on the nose; follows onto the palate. Finishes with a decent hop bite. (200 characters)

On draft at Bar Louie in Tampa. Pours a golden copper with one finger creamy white head. Aroma of light citrus, bready malt. Flavor is mostly malt, some light bitter, more malt. Falls a bit flat for me. Medium carbonation and slightly slick. Just not all that great. Meh. (271 characters)

T: A bit understated and disappointing based on all of the other components. Both malty and hoppy, but just not enough of a clear identity of one or the other, such that neither the malt nor the hops prop up and better the other. Somewhat muted floral hops bitterness after nutty malt flavors.

M: Very slick and coating which I liked. Smooth and pleasant hops aftertaste.

D: Easy to drink and enjoy, but you get the feeling that one more push could really elevate this beer to something special. (675 characters)

Made with Northern Brewer, Centennial, and Cascade hops.
Clear, caramel in color forming a small white head with mild retention and lacing. Aroma is pungent with pronounced Cascade hops and little else (perhaps honey). Mouthfeel is crisp and very acidic with a medium body. Taste is also very pungent with pronounced citric and oily hops. Very much a heartburn brew with a medium strong citric grapefruit rind bitterness. Alcohol is midly perceptable in flavor. A bit overpowering, out of whack, and true to west-coast offerings. Not my bag but well-made. (556 characters)

Nice citrus and pine nose. There is also some grainy malts in the background.

The taste is definitely on the English side of the IPA spectrum. Nicely bracing and a bit oily, the beer has a good malt background for balance. I like the juiciness of this beer and the citrus notes.

The beer coats your mouth and leaves you ready for the next sip. The finish is nicely dry.

This is a good example of this style. Hats off to the brewer! (510 characters)

Pours a nice, rich, clear darkish amber color. A well-sized, slightly off-white head with decent retention and mssive amounts of lace left behind.Smell is slightly sweet, citrusy with malt and hops.Taste is hops in the foreground but not harshly, malt backing it up with a very light citrus note.Somewhat dry, medium body with a light effervescence. Leaves a light coating on the tongue and in the throat but it isn't a big deal. Overall, a good brew that I would have again (even though the style isn't my first choice). Not a harsh or brutal bitterness that some IPAs have, much more drinkable and enjoyable. (613 characters)

A: Pours a nice copper color, with a good bit of haze that develops. 1 1/2 finger head forms, but dissipates relatively quickly. Streams of bubbles visible.

S: Citrus & pine hops dominate, but as you wait a moment some malt presence (sweet & bready) starts to show up. The aromas seem diminished here a bit.

T: A bit of a grapefruit hops punch up front, but it fades quickly into a generic hop bitterness flavor that the sweet-ish biscuity malts can't keep up with. There is an almost sour flavor at the end that stays around with the hop-bitter hang.

O: I've had this beer on-tap multiple times, and always thought it was a well-above average IPA. This is my first shot with it since they started canning and I'm more than a little disappointed. It's not a bad IPA in this incarnation, but not nearly what it is at the brewpub itself. (970 characters)

T: Taste is actually better than the smell. Nice punch of orange like hops on the tip of the tongue. A little earthiness as well. Then you get the meshing of the sweet bready malts on the back end. Finish is fairly dry with lingering hop bitterness.

Poured a cloudy dull amber, lots of sediment from the bottom of the can, two fingers thick dense, offwhite colored head. Settles to a thin ring, nice sheet of lace down the glass. Smell: caramel, dried apricot, hopping is leafy, mildly earthy and citric. Taste: bitterness dominated... primarily earthy and medicinal, with orange citrus and a little grapefruit peel coming in mid-sip. Lots of caramel and some biscuit in the back. Medium bodied, creamy, semi-sugary, piney and sweet citrus in the finish. Raw in a lot of aspects, but still enjoyable. From pint can, no freshness date. (584 characters)

S-creamy orange hops. Sweet smelling, almost as if it had vanilla to it...which reminds me of SN Celebration. Slight aged aspect to it.

T-comes in with a decent taste of bitter hops, but mostly a fistful Florida citrus. It's really citrusy, similar to a fresh cut orange. It's a lasting flavor that continues as an after-taste. It's a good clean flavor, with out much of the aged aspect found in the nose.

M-good creamy carbonation with a creamy finish

O-I'm pretty impressed with this. It's an extremely quaffable ipa. Great balance of flavor and bitterness. I could see me loving a bunch of cans of these on a sunny Florida beach....at least if I were to ever get bored of Jai Alai first. (755 characters)

Excited to see the Tampa Bay Brewing Co. canning beer! It's been years since I had this on tap at their brewpub.

A cloudy light amber with a lot of sediment and a big stick head. Floaties don't bother me, but I bet many would be put off by its appearance.

Nice hop aroma of citrus and earth.

Excellent taste: It's quite bitter with citrus-peel-like hop flavors. They call this a West Coast IPA, and I agree: it's dry with the emphasis on the hop flavors and sharp bitterness rather than a semblance of balance from the malt. Slight metallic notes from the hops

Nice solid body.

I remembered this beer being excellent on tap at the brewpub and the canned version maintains that standard. A must-try for hopheads. (716 characters)

Contrary to what is stated, I had this beer last evening. The beer was a very nice reddish orange color with a nice two finger head. The beer presented itself very well. The aroma was almost all hops, but in a big way, with a hint of a floral aroma. The taste, all hops all the time. Very nice strong hoppy flavor to it, that is really all that I got, but it is really all that I want out of an IPA. The carbonation was as expected, noticeable but not so much that it took aware from the beer and it had a really nice bitter, dry aftertaste. Overall, highly drinakble beer. (605 characters)